Spiritual nature conservation is nature conservation on an additional level. By reconnecting with yourself you connect to true nature, too, because we are nature and nature needs our protection urgently.
"Hi, I'm Silvana and I'm a...", that's how most first interactions start. Our profession comes at the very beginning. But I didn't have a name for my profession during the last 3 years and had to use many, many words to explain what it is I'm doing. Mostly I only received blank and confused looks. Until now. I have finally found a name for my job, which is still quite unconventional, but short and sweet. And so I would love to re-introduce myself and my profession.
Hi, I'm Silvana and I'm a spiritual nature conservationist.
Ok, probably I still need some more words to explain what that means, so let me clarify:
I help people to reconnect with nature and therefore with themselves. I do that through my texts, rituals and yoga classes. Perhaps it's also my name who made me care about nature so much. My name is Silvana, which originates from the Latin word silva, which means forest. Silvanus was the Roman god of the forest, the valleys and the gorges and I like to think that I'm the female version of him. Silvana, the goddess of the forest.
Nature always struck a chord inside of me, but only by living here in the mountains and by becoming self-employed was I able to hear the call again, after it completely drowned in the noise of life. I think this call has always been here, because otherwise I wouldn't have cried bitter tears seeing the icebergs melt as a child. Otherwise I wouldn't have already dreamed of a cabin at the edge of the forest as an adolescent. Otherwise I wouldn't have chosen to spend all my holidays in search of untouched nature. And my call whispers assertively that I'm here to tell all the untold stories of the trees, rocks, stars, flowers and waters. Those tales that are quiet and gentle, but so familiar. We all are part of those stories. Like the forest or the sea who have a verse in the poem of this world, we, too, are writing our part. We are nature, we belong. But we have to choose how we want this story to proceed. Do we want a happy ending or drama?
We protect what we love.
I discovered that I want to inspire people to return to their true nature. That means that life has to become slower and calmer again, so that we can feel and recognize ourselves. To reconnect to ourselves, whether that's through yoga, forest bathing, walking, meditation or being creative, also means to connect to our inner core. We are nature and nature is us. When we learn to appreciate and love ourselves and nature, we practice spiritual nature conservation. Because we protect what we love.
I don't have to explain to you how our planet is doing. You can see and feel that yourself. We are cutting into our own leg. For when nature isn't doing well, we, too, are suffering. But in reverse it means that when Mother Nature is doing good, we, too, are thriving.
Yes, maybe I can't change the world on my own and if everyone thinks in this way nothing will ever happen. But listening to the fire of passion and anger inside of me I know that I have to do something, no matter how small I am. Each and every one of us has the ability to do something, something small that can grow into something great. When we live with the rhythm of nature and we feel connected to ourselves, we start making decisions more consciously and mindfully. We recognize the value of our home, start to speak about our contribution in conserving nature, hence inspire others to listen to their inner voice and to become active and we create waves that will expand more and more.
That's what spiritual nature conservation means to me, nature conservation on an additional level.
I would like to remain on this topic for a while and will post more articles in the future about practical steps you can take to apply spiritual nature conservation in your own life. I hope you're in!
